1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is directed toward machinery for insertion of coupons in a hinged lid pack of cigarettes. More specifically the present invention is directed toward the insertion of the coupon between the inner foil wrap and the inner frame portion of the hinged lid box.
2. Discussion of the Prior Art
Hinge lid cigarette pack making machines are fairly well known in the art. These machines wrap the cigarettes in a foil or other material and then insert the foil into a pocket or other surrounding device which allows the foil wrapped cigarettes to be inserted into a hinged lid carton or allows the hinged lid carton to be formed around them. In most machines this occurs by wrapping the cigarettes in a foil type material, transferring this wrapped pack of cigarettes to a transfer station, and inserting around the foil wrapped cigarettes the inner-frame portion of the hinged lid cigarette pack.
It has also been very common in the prior art to attempt insertion of a coupon or other advertising material into the cigarette pack. This has either been achieved through insertion of the coupon or other material in the inner lining or foil wrap lining so that the material is directly adjacent to the cigarettes or attachment of the coupon or advertising material to the exterior portion of the cigarette of the hinged lid box. It may however be desirable to accomplish insertion of the coupon in between the inner frame portion of the hinge lid box and the foil wrapping material around the cigarettes. Insertion of the coupon at this point allows the user to visibly see the coupon upon opening of the hinged lid top portion of the package prior to peeling away the foil covering the top portion of the wrapped cigarettes. However, as noted herein, prior art machines have typically allowed for insertion of the coupon material only in the inner portion of the wrapped cigarettes, i.e. the coupon is wrapped with the cigarettes by the foil, or attachment of the coupon to the exterior of the packaging. Neither of these two alternatives is very desirable in that they interfere with the packaging process or they may impart undesirable characteristics to the flavor of the tobacco.
It is commonly known that inks or other additives commonly found on coupons and advertising material may negatively impact the flavor of tobacco. This especially occurs if the material is contained in the interior portion of the wrapped cigarettes inside of the cellophane wrapping. While some of these problems have been overcome, it has further been problematic in inserting coupons in the interior of foil wrapped cigarettes since insertion at this point can cause packaging problems further down the line and also since the consumer may not readily see the coupon or other inserted material. It is further undesirable to attach or adhere coupons or other material to the exterior portion of the pack since this takes away from the overall appearance of the packaging.
None of these prior art systems allow for insertion of coupons or other material in a readily visible position when the hinge lid pack is initially opened by the consumer.
The present invention is directed toward a coupon inserter for inserting coupons or other material in a hinged lid pack between the foil and the inner frame portion of the hinged lid package. The apparatus of the present invention is designed to overcome the problems heretofore known in the hinged lid packaging industry.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a coupon inserting apparatus for insertion of coupons into a hinged lid pack of cigarettes wherein the coupon is inserted between the foil and inner frame portion of the hinged lid pack.
It is another object of the present invention to insure that a coupon or other material is positioned in between the foil wrapping material and the inner frame portion of the hinged lid pack such that the consumer, upon flipping open the hinged lid top, readily sees the coupon or other advertising material.
It is a further object of the present invention to integrate a coupon inserting apparatus with a standard hinged lid pack making machine such that currently existing pack making machines may be retrofitted to include the coupon inserter of the present invention.
It is an additional object of the present invention to provide insertion of the coupon or other material in a timely fashion along the third wheel and in the third wheel pocket of known hinged lid pack making machines such that the coupon is positioned properly prior to insertion of the foil wrapped cigarettes along the inner frame portion of the pack.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a coupon insertion machine which operates and which is integrated with the third wheel portion of a hinged lid packing machine such that the coupon inserter works in unison with the speed of the packing machine.
It is a further object of the present invention to provide a third wheel portion of a hinged lid packing machine such that a coupon may be inserted directly in the third wheel pocket.
A further object of the present invention is to modify the rail portion of the third wheel section of the hinged lid packing machine such that a coupon, which may be inserted in the third wheel pocket, maintains its position as the third wheel pocket rotates and passes below the insertion point of the foil wrapped cigarette pack.
An even further object of the present invention is to provide a controller for controlling the coupon inserter such that the controller is operably connected to the hinge lid packing machine in order to determine the rotational speed of the third wheel thereby dispensing coupons from the coupon dispenser at an adequate speed corresponding to the rotational speed of the third wheel.